The association of autoimmune diseases with pediatric ulcerative colitis does not influence its disease course

Objective. Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory condition. Previous reports suggested that UC may have a worse prognosis when associated with auto-immune diseases. We compared characteristics at diagnosis and natural history of the disease between classical ulcerative colitis (CUC) and UC associated with auto-immune diseases (CAI) in children. Material and methods. In this study, 67 children followed for UC at Nancy University Hospital between 1993 and 2012 were included: 45 patients in the CUC group and 22 in the CAI group. Results. Median follow-up was 4.8 years. Median age at diagnosis was 11.6 years in the CAI group and 9.8 years in the CUC group. Time between symptoms onset and diagnosis was broadly similar in the two groups (<3 months) and there were no significant differences regarding biological and histological findings. At 5 years, the need for corticosteroids and azathioprine did not differ between the CAI and the CUC groups. There was also no significant difference between the two groups regarding infliximab use at 1 and 5 years. Conclusions. In this pediatric study, CAI had similar characteristics at baseline as CUC. The course of CAI does not seem to be influenced by the presence of concomitant auto-immune diseases.